Covid: hospitals fight sickness and backlogs as latest wave hits UK

Staff absences adding to workforce problems caused by Brexit, pension disputes and exhaustion, says expertHealthcare workers: ‘There’s a feeling of powerlessness’Hospitals are battling staff absences, exhaustion, persistent backlogs and problems discharging patients in the wake of the latest wave of Covid, the Guardian has found, as infection levels continue to rise across the UK.According to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics, an estimated 2.71 million peo